HB 879: Motor vehicles; penalty for violations captured by school bus camera; provisions

Georgia law already punishes drivers who fail to stop for a stopped school bus, both through criminal citations and civil penalties issued from bus-mounted cameras. This bill changes the criminal penalty for illegally passing a school bus from a 'high and aggravated misdemeanor' to a regular misdemeanor, but sets a fine range of $500 to $1,000 instead of a flat $1,000 maximum. It applies the same $500 to $1,000 range to the civil monetary penalty issued when a camera catches a vehicle, and lets a court reduce, modify, or suspend that penalty. The bill also requires the law enforcement agency to get the vehicle owner's name and address from the Department of Revenue before mailing the citation, and requires that mailing to include a bold, 12-point statement telling the owner they have a right to contest the penalty in court. Finally, it changes how camera-generated penalty money must be spent: instead of funding local law enforcement or public safety initiatives generally, the money must be split equally among all schools in the jurisdiction for defined 'school safety purposes' such as access control, surveillance, and crossing guards.

• Changes the criminal penalty for illegally passing a stopped school bus from a high and aggravated misdemeanor to a regular misdemeanor, with a fine of $500 to $1,000 instead of up to $1,000.
• Sets the civil monetary penalty for camera-captured violations at $500 to $1,000 and allows a court to amend, reduce, suspend, or probate that penalty.
• Requires law enforcement to obtain the vehicle owner's name and address from the Department of Revenue before mailing a citation.
• Requires citation mailings to include a conspicuous 12-point statement telling owners they have a right to contest the penalty in court.
• Redirects camera penalty money away from general law enforcement or public safety funding, requiring it instead be split equally among all schools in the jurisdiction for defined school safety purposes.
• Defines 'school safety purposes' to include access control, communication and surveillance systems, cyber security, crossing guards, safety training, and mental health support services with law enforcement.

Drivers who pass stopped school buses illegally, vehicle owners cited through school bus cameras, local law enforcement agencies that issue citations and collect penalties, the Department of Revenue, and public and private elementary and secondary schools that would receive the reallocated penalty funds.

Drivers cited for passing a stopped school bus would face a defined fine range rather than a flat maximum, and camera-ticketed vehicle owners would get clearer notice of their right to fight the penalty in court. Schools, rather than general law enforcement budgets, would receive the collected penalty money for safety upgrades.

• Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 40-6-163(a), changing the criminal offense from a high and aggravated misdemeanor to a regular misdemeanor and setting a $500 to $1,000 fine range.
• Section 1 revises subparagraph (d)(3)(A) to set the civil monetary penalty at $500 to $1,000 and lets courts amend, modify, alter, suspend, or probate the penalty when determining liability.
• Section 1 revises subparagraph (d)(3)(B) to require law enforcement to obtain owner information from Department of Revenue records before mailing the citation within ten days.
• Section 1 adds a requirement that citation mailings include a 12-point conspicuous statement informing owners of their right to contest the penalty in court.
• Section 1 revises paragraph (15) of subsection (d) to define 'school safety purposes' and require collected penalty money be allocated equally among all schools in the jurisdiction, rather than funding local law enforcement or public safety initiatives generally.
• Section 2 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2025-04-02House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-03-31House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-03-28House Hopper (House)

• Don Parsons (R, HD-44)Primary sponsor
• Matt Barton (R, HD-5)
• Derrick McCollum (R, HD-30)
• Alan Powell (R, HD-33)
• Mitchell Scoggins (R, HD-14)
• Matthew Gambill (R, HD-15)

• school bus safety
• traffic violations
• traffic camera fines
• school funding
• criminal penalties